Department of Agriculture, Food and Environment Sciences, University of Foggia, via Napoli 25, 71122, Foggia, Italy.
Department of Clinical and Experimental Medicine, University of Foggia, Viale Pinto 1, 71122, Foggia, Italy.
Appl Microbiol Biotechnol. 2017 Apr;101(7):2641-2657. doi: 10.1007/s00253-017-8182-z. Epub 2017 Feb 17.
Lactic acid bacteria (LAB) are a heterogeneous group of Gram-positive bacteria that comprise several species which have evolved in close association with humans (food and lifestyle). While their use to ferment food dates back to very ancient times, in the last decades, LAB have attracted much attention for their documented beneficial properties and for potential biomedical applications. Some LAB are commensal that colonize, stably or transiently, host mucosal surfaces, inlcuding the gut, where they may contribute to host health. In this review, we present and discuss the main factors enabling LAB adaptation to such lifestyle, including the gene reprogramming accompanying gut colonization, the specific bacterial components involved in adhesion and interaction with host, and how the gut niche has shaped the genome of intestine-adapted species. Moreover, the capacity of LAB to colonize abiotic surfaces by forming structured communities, i.e., biofilms, is briefly discussed, taking into account the main bacterial and environmental factors involved, particularly in relation to food-related environments. The vast spread of LAB surface-associated communities and the ability to control their occurrence hold great potentials for human health and food safety biotechnologies.
乳酸菌（LAB）是一群革兰氏阳性细菌，包含了许多与人类（食品和生活方式）密切相关的物种。尽管它们用于发酵食品的历史可以追溯到很久以前，但在过去的几十年里，LAB 因其被证实的有益特性和潜在的生物医学应用而引起了广泛关注。一些 LAB 是共生菌，它们在宿主黏膜表面（包括肠道）定殖或短暂定殖，从而有助于宿主健康。在这篇综述中，我们介绍并讨论了 LAB 适应这种生活方式的主要因素，包括伴随肠道定殖的基因重编程、参与黏附和与宿主相互作用的特定细菌成分，以及肠道小生境如何塑造适应肠道的物种的基因组。此外，我们还简要讨论了 LAB 通过形成结构化群落（即生物膜）定殖非生物表面的能力，考虑到相关的主要细菌和环境因素，特别是与食品相关的环境。LAB 表面相关群落的广泛传播及其控制其发生的能力，为人类健康和食品安全生物技术带来了巨大的潜力。
